Afghanistan

Viscount Waverley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what will be the effect of Pakistan closing its border to the passage of fuel and supplies to NATO troops in Afghanistan; what reasons have been given by Russia for the threatened closure of the Northern Distribution Network; and what alternatives are being considered.

Lord Wallace of Saltaire: Following a cross-border incident overnight on 25 and 26 November 2011, Pakistan has closed its borders to ISAF traffic consignments entering and exiting Afghanistan through Pakistan by surface means. Alternative lines of communication are unaffected.
	Though the likely duration of the Pakistan border closure is not clear, this is not a cause for concern yet; suspension of flow across the ground lines of communication are not unknown. Given the nature and priority of sustainment materiel already en route and the level of stocks held in Afghanistan, the impact of the closure of the border crossing is assessed as being manageable.
	Russia has not threatened to close the Northern Distribution Network. Russian officials have confirmed, following public statements recently made by the Russian ambassador to NATO, that Russia is willing to allow NATO cargoes to Afghanistan and back to transit through its territory.
	Commercially sourced and delivered commodities, including food and fuel, continue to flow into Afghanistan; those contractors who are reliant on the Pakistan borders are, where necessary, in the process of scoping alternatives.
	We are resilient to border closures of the type we are currently experiencing in Pakistan. However, sensible planning is ongoing to identify alternative arrangements. This includes a greater use of the other lines of communication to provide mitigation should the Pakistani border remain closed to ISAF traffic in the longer term.
	The supply items provisioned for Christmas are unaffected.

Afghanistan

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what positive results they expect to come from the international conference on Afghanistan to be held in Bonn on 5 December.

Lord Howell of Guildford: The Bonn conference held on 5 December reiterated the international community's long term commitment to Afghanistan. The conference conclusions set out a range of commitments on the part of the international community and Afghan government to work towards a secure and stable Afghanistan.
	These commitments include:
	the international community's economic support to Afghanistan for the decade after 2014, until Afghanistan becomes economically self-sustainable;a clear plan for the future funding for the Afghan National Security Forces in advance of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation Chicago summit in May 2012;a clear set of guiding principles for the reconciliation process and its outcomes;the Afghan Government reinvigorating the progress on key development priorities, including governance, anti-corruption and rule of law; andthe Afghan Government upholding all their international human rights obligations and protecting women's rights as enshrined in the Constitution.

Autumn Statement

Lord Barnett: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they will publish the contingency planning to deal with all potential outcomes of the Eurozone crisis referred to in the Chancellor of the Exchequer's Autumn Statement.

Lord Sassoon: As the Chancellor of the Exchequer made clear in his Autumn Statement, we are undertaking extensive contingency planning to deal with all potential outcomes of the euro crisis. There are no plans to publish this work.

Autumn Statement

Lord Barnett: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the announcement by the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Autumn Statement that an increase in the ceiling on asset purchases by the Bank of England to £275 billion had been authorised, what assets were expected to be purchased with this sum.

Lord Sassoon: The Chancellor of the Exchequer, in his letter to the Governor of the Bank of England on 6 October 2011, authorised an increase in the ceiling of asset purchases financed by the issuance of central bank reserves from £200 billion to £275 billion.
	As set out in a market notice published on the Bank of England's website on 6 October, the independent Monetary Policy Committee decided to purchase gilts with the additional £75 billion.

Aviation: Health and Safety

Lord Morris of Manchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Freud on 5 December (WA 106), how many breaches of health and safety legislation by airlines have been identified; and how many times enforcement action has been taken.

Lord Freud: In the 10 year period 2001-02 to 2010-11 significant breaches of health and safety legislation by airlines and associated subsidiaries resulted in 29 improvement notices, two deferred prohibition notices and two immediate prohibition notices. There were also two prosecution cases, one of which resulted in conviction for two breaches.
	Each notice served may cover more than one breach of legislation.
	These figures do not include breaches of legislation which may be dealt with through verbal or written advice rather than formal enforcement action.

Aviation: Health and Safety

Lord Morris of Manchester: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Freud on 5 December (WA 106), whether they will name the carriers against whom enforcement action has been taken.

Lord Freud: The names of the carriers (including engineering subsidiaries where relevant) are available to view on HSE's prosecutions database, and are reproduced below.
	
		
			 Air Contractors (UL) Ltd 
			 Alitalia 
			 American Airlines 
			 BA Cityflyer 
			 British Airways Maintenance 
			 British Airways Engineering 
			 Emerald Airways Engineering Ltd 
			 European Aviation Air Charter Ltd 
			 FlyBe 
			 Ghana Airways Corporation 
			 Jet2.com 
			 LoganAir Ltd 
			 Monarch Aircraft Engineering Ltd 
			 Ryanair 
			 Thomsonfly Ltd 
			 United Airlines

Banking

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will publish a progress report on the review into the scope for operational savings in private finance initiative projects, launched by Lord Sassoon on 16 February.

Lord Sassoon: The Government will continue to review the banks' performance against their Project Merlin commitments. Banks must meet their commitments in a way that is proportionate and fair to their customers.
	The terms under which Project Merlin is measured are set out in the published agreement. The terms under which the Bank of England measures its trends in lending data are a matter for the Bank of England.

Banking

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to introduce a framework of financial support to be activated in the event of the financial collapse of a central counterparty and trade repository.

Lord Sassoon: I refer the noble Lord to my answer to his question of 15 November. That answer is available at: http://services.parliament.uk/hansard/Lords/bydate/20111115/writtenanswers/part004.html.

Banking: Bonuses

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Sassoon on 25 November (WA 201), what standard they will apply in ensuring that Royal Bank of Scotland is "paying no more in bonuses than is necessary to protect the value of the taxpayer's investment".

Lord Sassoon: UK Financial Investments Ltd (UKFI) is responsible for managing the Government's investment in Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) on an arm's length and commercial basis.
	UKFI seeks to ensure that RBS fulfills its obligations under the Financial Services Authority's Remuneration Code and that RBS pays no more than necessary to protect the commercial interests of the bank. UKFI takes account of appropriate external benchmarks in relation to key financial measures, both on an absolute basis and relative to year-on-year progress.

Banking: Fraud

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many money mules have been successfully prosecuted for involvement in online and phone banking fraud.

Lord Henley: This information is not held centrally.

Banking: Lending

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they plan to investigate reports from the Federation of Small Businesses that United Kingdom banks are requiring customers to move bank loans from an existing account to a new one; and whether they plan to make adjustments to the published Project Merlin and Trends in Lending data to take account of such behaviour.

Lord Sassoon: The Government updated the February 2011 draft operational savings guidance on 19 July. They published a guidance note "Making savings in operational PFI contracts."
	The savings guidance can be found at the following link: http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/d/iuk_making_ savings.pdf

Banking: Lending

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Bank of England will monitor banks' compliance with the terms of the facilities covered by the National Loan Guarantee Scheme; and whether this monitoring will be conducted in accordance with the Bank's statistical standards.

Lord Sassoon: At the Autumn Statement the Chancellor said: "We have developed with the Bank of England a mechanism to allocate funding to different banks, based on how much they increase both net and gross lending to firms".

Banking: Levy

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the implementation of the Independent Commission on Banking proposals to enhance the safety of United Kingdom retail and commercial banking will obviate the case for a bank levy.

Lord Sassoon: The purpose of the bank levy is to ensure that the banking sector makes a fair contribution, reflecting the risks that banks pose to the financial system and the wider economy. The levy is also designed to encourage banks to move away from riskier funding models.
	The bank levy is not a charge in relation to any implicit guarantee. The bank levy and the Independent Commission on Banking proposals are, therefore, complementary elements of the Government's reform agenda.

Benefits

Lord Stoddart of Swindon: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether all relevant government departments were consulted about the decision to increase welfare benefits by 5.2 per cent at a time when wages and salaries are increasing by 2.3 per cent and public sector incomes are limited to a 1 per cent increase for two years; and, if so, what were their reactions.

Lord Freud: Decisions on up-rating were reached collectively. The considerations taken into account on up-rating were outlined in the Distributional Analysis to accompany the Autumn Statement. As my honourable friend the Minister for Pensions said in the Up-rating Statement on 6 December, "we have uprated working age benefits by 5.2 per cent, protecting the real incomes of the poorest" 96 December 2011: col. 165).

China and Turkey

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many journalists they estimate are imprisoned for reasons connected to journalism in (1) China, and (2) Turkey.

Lord Howell of Guildford: Reporters without Borders's Press Freedom Barometer 2011 estimates that 30 journalists are currently imprisoned in China, while the Committee to Protect Journalists puts the figure at 27. Most of these cases involve charges such as inciting subversion of state power, inciting separatism, endangering national security or divulging state secrets.
	We believe that greater freedom of the media is strongly in China's own interests. We monitor these issues closely and have raised a number of cases of concern regarding imprisoned journalists and bloggers in our regular human rights dialogue with the Chinese Government.
	The latest reported information is from the Turkish Journalists Association. They recently reported to the European delegation that there are currently 54 journalists imprisoned in Turkey.

Climate Change

Lord Stevens of Ludgate: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answers by Lord Marland on 13 December 2010 (WA 110) and on 16 February 2011 (WA 164-5) on the cost of sending the United Kingdom delegation to the 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference, how much they have budgeted for their participation at the 2011 United Nations Climate Change Conference; and whether this is more or less than the cost of participating at the 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference.

Lord Marland: DECC will make public the cost of sending the UK delegation to the 2011 United Nations Climate Change Conference once figures have been finalised. This will be via publication on the department's website, as was the case following the 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference. The department has made every effort to ensure that the cost of sending the UK delegation to the 2011 conference is less than the cost of the 2010 conference (which was £355,701).

Crime: Metal Theft

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 21 November (WA 184), where and in what format the information on prosecutions for metal theft is held.

Lord McNally: Prosecutions for metal theft are likely to be instigated under Section 1 of the Theft Act 1968. The number of defendants proceeded against at magistrates' courts for dishonestly appropriating/stealing property belonging to another, under part Section 1 of the Theft Act 1968, in England and Wales from 2006 to 2010 (latest available) can be viewed in the table. Centrally held court proceedings data, other than where specified in a statute, do not identify the type of stolen property.
	The individual magistrates' courts in England and Wales hold electronic records in the form of court registers of proceedings for criminal offences.
	
		
			 Defendants proceeded against at magistrates' courts for dishonestly appropriating/stealing property belong to another, for selected offences under (part) Section 1 of the Theft Act 1968(1), England and Wales, 2006-10(2)(3) 
			 2006 2007 2008(4) 2009 2010 
			 21,188 24,016 23,434 19,429 21,959 
		
	
	(1) Offences used under Section 1 of the Theft Act 1968 Dishonestly appropriating property belonging to another; stealing.
	(2) The figures given in the table relate to persons for whom these offences were the principal offences for which they were dealt with. When a defendant has been found guilty of two or more offences it is the offence for which the heaviest penalty is imposed. Where the same disposal is imposed for two or more offences, the offence selected is the offence for which the statutory maximum penalty is the most severe.
	(3) Every effort is made to ensure that the figures presented are accurate and complete. However, it is important to note that these data have been extracted from large administrative data systems generated by the courts and police forces. As a consequence, care should be taken to ensure data collection processes and their inevitable limitations are taken into account when those data are used.
	(4) Excludes data for Cardiff magistrates' court for April, July and August 2008.
	Source: Justice Statistics Analytical Services-Ministry of Justice.
	PQ HL 4004

Currencies

Lord Pearson of Rannoch: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have made any assessment of the number of countries which have changed their currencies since 1945; and, if so, what the average cost has been to those countries as a percentage of gross domestic product.

Lord Sassoon: The Government have made no such assessment.

Cycling

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of whether the regulations governing the use of bicycles on public roads requires updating; whether they propose to make such changes; and, if so, when.

Earl Attlee: The Government will be announcing the outcomes from the Red Tape Challenge with regards to cycling regulations shortly.

Cyclists: Helmets

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Attlee on 1 December (WA 90) concerning the wearing of helmets by cyclists, why, given that helmets can reduce the chances of death and serious injury, they will not make the wearing of helmets mandatory.

Earl Attlee: We have no plans to mandate the use of cycle helmets. Helmets offer cyclists protection in a limited number of circumstances and, as such, whilst we encourage their use through the Highway Code we believe the decision on whether to wear a helmet should remain a matter of individual choice. In addition, mandating the use of helmets could lead to a reduction in overall cycling levels, resulting in the loss of the significant health benefits derived from cycling.

Economy: Growth

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether building and renovating social housing will generate more employment than equivalent spending on road and rail infrastructure.

Lord Sassoon: It is difficult to make direct comparisons between sectors but there is evidence that investment in both housing and economic infrastructure can have a positive impact on employment and economic growth. Academic evidence on the long-term productivity impact of investment in economic infrastructure is discussed in paragraph 1.2 of the National Infrastructure Plan 2011. Estimates by the Office of National Statistics show that short-term output from housing construction, repairs and maintenance has averaged 3 per cent of GDP in the last decade1.
	1 ONS Construction Output

Economy: National Debt

Lord Barnett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the interest rate paid on the national debt before and after the Budget in March 2010; and what is the current rate.

Lord Sassoon: The results of gilt issuance operations, including the average accepted yields, are available on the Debt Management Office's website at http://www.dmo.gov.uk/index.aspx?page=Gilts/Operations.
	The March 2010 Budget was delivered on 24 March 2010. The 10 year benchmark gilt yield was 3.92 per cent at close-markets on 23 March 2010 and 3.98 per cent at close-markets on 24 March 2010. At close-markets on 12 December 2011, it was 2.10 per cent. These yields are taken from Bloomberg.

Education: Examinations

Lord Clement-Jones: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they prompted the change of policy at the Joint Council for Qualifications regarding extra time allowable in exams for those with dyslexia and other communication conditions; and, if so, why; whether they or the Joint Council for Qualifications have consulted on such a change of policy, and, if so, who was consulted; and which categories of students, and how many, they estimate will be affected by this change of policy.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The Equality Act 2010 places a duty on awarding organisations to make reasonable adjustments to qualifications such as GCSEs to meet the needs of disabled candidates.
	The relevant trade association, the Joint Council for Qualifications (JCQ) produces guidance for its members on how those adjustments can be made by means of the permitted access arrangements. In practice this guidance determines the approach taken by schools, colleges and other exam centres. We have no direct involvement in the production of this guidance. However, the independent qualifications regulator, Ofqual, has oversight of the qualifications system, with a remit to safeguard standards and confidence in qualifications. An important aspect of that role is to ensure that appropriate systems are in place in relation to reasonable adjustments.
	A range of access arrangements is available for disabled candidates with communication conditions, including the use of readers, scribes, word processors and alternative formats for papers. One common access arrangement is to give extra time to a candidate whose disability places them at a substantial disadvantage over others when completing a timed assessment in the time allowed. To protect the integrity of (and therefore confidence in) the system, appropriate evidence is required to justify such an access arrangement. Extra time is only given to candidates whose disabilities give rise to a need for extra time in their normal school activities. This policy has been reflected for some years in the JCQ guidance.

Education: Get Set Programme

Baroness Coussins: To ask Her Majesty's Government what evaluation they have made, or will be making, of the effectiveness of the Get Set programme in encouraging the teaching and learning of modern languages in schools.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The London Organising Committee for the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG) carries out an annual evaluation of its education programme, Get Set, through its research partner, Nielsen. This research is not specific to modern foreign languages or any other curriculum subject, but it examines how schools have used the programme. A small number of case studies of modern foreign language applications has been generated by the qualitative elements of this research.

Energy: Biofuels

Lord Teverson: To ask Her Majesty's Government when a decision will be taken as to whether bioliquids will be included in the domestic sector renewable heat incentive regime.

Lord Marland: As stated in the Renewable Heat Incentive policy document (published in March), we are considering whether to support bioliquids as part of developing the second phase of the scheme. In the light of the later than expected launch of phase one of the Renewable Heat Incentive and of the changes required by the European Commission, we are reviewing the timetable for the introduction of phase two and will confirm the timetable early next year.

Energy: Green Growth

Baroness Smith of Basildon: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Pew Environment Group's conclusion that the United Kingdom has fallen from third to 13th in the world in terms of investment in green growth.

Baroness Wilcox: The Pew Environment Group's report, Who's Winning the Clean Energy Race? assesses key financial, investment and technological trends in the G-20 produced from underlying data from Bloomberg New Energy Finance. The data covers transactions across a range of stages of investment and renewable energy and energy efficiency projects.
	While it is true that UK 2010 investment levels in this sector have fallen in comparison to 2009 levels, leading to a drop in ranking, the five-year growth rate for finance and investment in this area is still very strong (49 per cent), with installed "cleantech" capacity growing at 21 per cent over the same period.
	Other sources suggest that the UK performs well with respect to particular aspects of financing clean technologies. For example, according to Cleantech Group which provides market intelligence on investment and the companies innovating across green sectors, in 2010 the UK is ranked third globally after USA and China in terms of amount of venture capital investment in the green sector. The UK was also placed third in 2009.
	HM Government recognise that an unprecedented level of investment over the coming decades will be required to deliver a transition to a green economy and is working towards achieving that transition through the development of well designed, long-term and stable policies.

Energy: Maritime Wind Farms

Lord Dixon-Smith: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the service life-expectancy in years of the under-sea electric cables used to transmit into the National Grid the electricity generated from maritime wind farms for which they have granted permission.

Lord Marland: Experience of onshore underground cables that have been properly manufactured and installed, then operated within their designed rating, indicates that a life-expectancy of 40 to 60 years and probably more is achievable. It is currently the subject of a number of international research programmes to predict just what additional life-expectancy there may be. Experience with submarine cable is limited compared with onshore underground cables and there is no comparable body of statistical evidence for prediction of life-expectancy. Equally, there is no evidence of premature failure of such installations.
	As submarine cable technology is so similar to onshore cable technology there is no reason to predict that life expectancy will be any less than onshore installations for properly designed, installed and operated systems.

Energy: Maritime Wind Farms

Lord Dixon-Smith: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the service life-expectancy in years of the pillars which are sunk into the seabed and on which wind turbine towers and generators are mounted in maritime wind farms for which they have granted permission.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the service life-expectancy in years of wind turbine towers mounted on the pillars in the seabed in maritime wind farms for which they have granted permission.

Lord Marland: The life expectancy of offshore wind turbine foundations and towers is typically assumed to be 25 years.

Energy: Tar Sands

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with (1) Canadian officials, and (2) European Commission officials, regarding the extraction of fuel from tar sands.

Earl Attlee: Ministers and officials have regular meetings with various stakeholders including representatives of oil companies, trade associations representing the transport fuels industry, a large number of UK and international non-governmental organisations (including those representing environmental and social issues), the European Commission, European member states and the Canadian Government to discuss the complex issue of the extraction of oil from oil sands and the European fuel quality directive.

Finance: Client Assets

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will consider launching a review of the regulation, processes and protection available in respect of client assets held by financial advisers and other authorised firms.

Lord Sassoon: The Financial Services Authority (FSA), as the UK's regulatory body, would be in charge of carrying out such a review. Monitoring the assets held by financial advisors and other authorised firms operating in the UK is also one of its primary responsibilities.
	The FSA has recently established a client asset specialist unit to help ensure the UK regulatory regime delivers adequate protection of client funds.
	The Government maintain a regular dialogue with the FSA on these matters.

Finance: Credit Easing

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Sassoon on 17 October (WA 11), how the policy of credit easing to be followed by HM Treasury will be co-ordinated with the policy of quantitative easing being implemented by the Bank of England; and why the Bank of England has not been given responsibility for implementing credit easing.

Lord Sassoon: The Bank of England has been engaging with HM Treasury on credit easing as part of routine government business. The Debt Management Office will administer the provision of guarantees for the National Loan Guarantee Scheme having previously successfully implemented the Credit Guarantee Scheme.

Finance: Credit Easing

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government how credit easing will be recorded on the Government's balance sheet; what assessment has been made of any likely losses; and what was the basis on which this determination was made.

Lord Sassoon: The expected impact of the Business Partnership Fund on public sector net borrowing and net debt is set out in chapter 3 of the Autumn Statement 2011 policy costings document. The expected impact of the National Loan Guarantee Scheme is outlined in paragraph 1.69 of the Autumn Statement.

Financial Services Authority

Lord Stevens of Ludgate: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Sassoon on 14 November (WA 106), when the Financial Services Authority will answer the questions.

Lord Sassoon: I understand that the Financial Services Authority replied on 28 November and that a copy of the letter has been placed in the Library of the House.

FTSE: Female Directors

Lord Oakeshott of Seagrove Bay: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will now provide the corrected version of the Written Answer by Baroness Wilcox on 25 October (WA 129) regarding female directors of FTSE companies.

Baroness Wilcox: FTSE 250 
			 Year No of women executive directors Percentage of total executive directors No of companies with no female executive 
			 2007 29 3.9% 231 
			 2008 27 3.9% 227 
			 2009 25 3.8% 227 
			 2010 27 4.2% 226 
			 2011 (02.11.11) 27 4.4% 226 
		
	
	
		
			 FTSE 100 
			 Year N° of women executive directors Percentage of total executive directors No of companies with no female executive 
			 2011 (02.11.11) 16 6.1% 84 
			 2010 18 5.5% 84 
			 2009 17 5.2% 85 
			 2008 17 4.8% 84 
			 2007 13 3.6% 89 
			 2006 15 3.8% 87 
			 2005 14 3.4% 89 
			 2004 17 4.1% 87 
			 2003 17 3.7% 87 
			 2002 15 3.0% 88 
		
	
	The figures were obtained from Cranfield School of Management: as at 2 November 2011

Gaza

Baroness Tonge: To ask Her Majesty's Government what has been the involvement in the extraction of gas from disputed reserves off the coast of Gaza of (1) United Kingdom companies, and (2) the United Kingdom Government.

Lord Howell of Guildford: In 2000, British Gas Group (BG Group) undertook exploratory drilling off the coast of Gaza. BG Group still own a 90 per cent interest in the Gaza marine licence, but withdrew from negotiations with the Government of Israel for gas sales at the end of 2007. During this period the Government was in contact with both BG and the Government of Israel about the reserves. With this exception, no other UK companies have been involved in the extraction of gas off the coast of Gaza.

Government Departments: Procurement

Lord Prescott: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the (1) date of purchase, (2) amount, (3) supplier and (4) level 3 or enhanced transaction entry of each transaction undertaken by the Ministry of Justice using the Government procurement card in (a) 2006-07, (b) 2007-08, (c) 2008-09, (d) 2009-10, and (e) 2010-11.

Lord McNally: The work required to obtain, contextualise and report Ministry of Justice GPC spend data for the periods 2006-11, or regarding those transactions under £500, would incur disproportionate cost.
	However, since 27 October 2011 the Ministry of Justice began to publish information on transactions of £500 and over for 2011-12 on our website and will continue to do so on a monthly basis: http://www.justice. gov.uk/publications/transparency-data/gov-procurement-card.htm.
	Information on transactions of £500 and over for 2010-11 will be published by the end of March 2012.

Government Departments: Procurement

Lord Prescott: To ask Her Majesty's Government what was the (1) date of purchase, (2) amount, (3) supplier and (4) level 3 or enhanced transaction entry of each transaction undertaken by the Department for Work and Pensions using the Government Procurement Card in (a) 2006-07, (b) 2007-08, (c) 2008-09, (d) 2009-10, and (e) 2010-11.

Lord Freud: This Government are committed to transparency and we believe the information regarding Government Procurement Cards for this financial year is the most relevant.
	During October we began to publish information on transactions over £500 for 2011-12 for Department for Work and Pensions on our website and will continue to do so on a monthly basis: How DWP is being transparent
	Information on transactions over £500 for 2010/11 will be published by the end of March 2012.
	The cost of work required to obtain, contextualise and report data for Central Government Departments from the previous 3 years, or regarding those transactions under £500, would exceed the cost limits of a Freedom of Information request or a Parliamentary question.

Health and Safety

Lord Boswell of Aynho: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the concerns expressed in the 2011 annual report of the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health, and information that the latest statistics on deaths and injuries in the workplace are trending upwards.

Lord Freud: The latest statistics published by the Health and Safety Executive on 2 November 2011 show a continuing downward trend in non-fatal workplace injury. This trend is observed from both survey data sources and reported injuries by employers.
	Fatal injuries to workers increased to 171 in 2010-11 from an historic low figure of 147 in 2009-10. However, the annual fatality count is subject to substantial chance variation as a result of fatalities being relatively rare events and data needs to be analysed over a number of years. The 2010-11 figure remains below the annual average for the five year period from 2005-06 to 2009-10 and is still consistent with a continuing downward trend.

Health: Clinical Trials

Lord Willis of Knaresborough: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps are being taken to remove any barriers to the setting up of clinical trials of investigational medicinal products (CTIMPS) caused by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency's interpretation of the European Union Clinical Trials Directive.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to seek revision of the European clinical trials directive.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps have been taken to implement their Plan for Growth recommendation that the Health Research Agency should work closely with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to create a unified approval process for clinical trials.

Earl Howe: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is the Government agency responsible for regulating clinical trials on medicines conducted in the United Kingdom. In April 2011 the MHRA introduced a risk adapted approach to the conduct of certain clinical trials in the UK, which operates within the framework of the current European Union Directive. Under this scheme researchers are encouraged to take proportionate approaches to the conduct, monitoring and documentation of certain lower risk trials. Guidance for researchers on implementing this approach is currently being produced. The MHRA continues to look for opportunities to reduce regulatory burdens within the current legislative framework whilst protecting UK public health.
	The Government sees the planned revision of the directive as an important opportunity to further reduce burdens on commercial and academic researchers and to introduce a more risk adapted approach to the monitoring and approval of clinical trials in order to improve the attractiveness of the European Union and the UK as a place for the conduct of clinical trials. The European Commission is expected to publish its proposals mid 2012. The MHRA has been heavily involved in helping the European Commission to shape its proposals and the Government continue to urge the European Commission to come up with its proposals as soon as possible.
	The Health Research Authority (HRA) started work on 1 December 2011 and will work with partners, including the MHRA, to develop plans to create a unified approval process. It has already published plans which include further developments to the Integrated Research Application System (IRAS) and which will see the development of electronic submission through IRAS. The IRAS Board will discuss at its scheduled meeting in January the timing of the release of this enhanced system across the partnership including the HRA, MHRA and NHS research permissions. This will see a stepped improvement in the integrated application system provided UK wide and remove the need for paper submissions. The IRAS Board will also discuss the development of a single application package within the integrated system and the coordination of messages to enable a single application route.
	In addition, on 1 December the HRA issued proposals for the further development of its National Research Ethics Service. These include measures to support further proportionality and consistency within the service, and to test the potential for a global assurance on the suitability of researchers and sponsors which could then be provided as a national assurance system through IRAS. These proposals are issued for comment and will be finalised and included in the comprehensive business plans for the HRA in April 2012.

Higher Education: Mathematical Sciences

Lord Wills: To ask Her Majesty's Government what information they have on how many people in the United Kingdom have a degree in (1) mathematics, (2) computer science, and (3) physics; and what information they have on what proportion of the total number of graduates in the United Kingdom have a degree in (1) mathematics, (2) computer science, and (3) physics.

Baroness Verma: Information is only available on the subject studied for the highest (degree level) qualification held by individuals who studied single subject degrees only.
	Those who initially gain a degree in one subject but go on to acquire a higher degree in another will only have the subject of their higher degree recorded. There is also insufficient detail on the subjects studied for those who studied combined degrees (e.g. Maths and French). Thus the data will underestimate the numbers of individuals with a degree in Mathematics, Computer Science or Physics.
	From the Labour Force Survey Q3 2011 data (covering the period July to September 2011), estimates of the numbers of individuals in the UK who studied a single subject degree in Physics, Maths or Computer Science for their highest qualification (split by type of highest degree) are as follows:
	
		
			  Highest Qualification 
			 Subject First Degree Doctorate Masters 
			 All 4,394,000 332,000 1,358,000 
			 Physics 59,000 20,000 19,000 
			 Maths 130,000 12,000 37,000 
			 Computer Science 219,000 12,000 82,000 
		
	
	LFS Q3 2011, All UK population
	Single degree subjects only
	"All" includes those with a known subject of study only
	Figures rounded to nearest 1000
	And the corresponding proportions of the total number of graduates with single subject degrees as their highest qualification whose highest degree was in physics, maths or computer science (split by type of highest degree) are as follows:
	
		
			  Highest Qualification 
			 Subject First Degree Doctorate Masters 
			 Physics 1.3% 6.0% 1.4% 
			 Maths 3.0% 3.6% 2.7% 
			 Computer Science 5.0% 3.7% 6.0% 
		
	
	LFS Q3 2011, All UK population
	Single degree subjects only
	Proportion of all those with a known subject of study only
	Proportions calculated from non-rounded figures

Higher Education: Mathematical Sciences

Lord Wills: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many people in the United Kingdom are studying degree-level (1) mathematics, (2) computer science, and (3) physics; and in each case what proportion this represents of the total number of students in the United Kingdom.

Baroness Verma: The numbers and proportions of enrolments to postgraduate and first degree courses in mathematical sciences, computer science and physics at UK higher education institutions are shown by domicile in the tables. Information for the 2010/11 academic year will become available from January 2012.
	
		
			 Postgraduate enrolments (1) in Mathematical Sciences, Computer Science and Physics by domicile (2) 
			 UK higher education institutions 
			 Academic year 2009-10 
			 Subject (3) UK Per cent of total EU Per cent of total Non-EU overseas Per cent of total 
			 Mathematical sciences 2,995 0.8% 735 1.5% 1,705 1.1% 
			 Computer science 8,775 2.3% 1,870 3.9% 13,235 8.4% 
			 Physics 2,490 0.7% 645 1.4% 800 0.5% 
			 Totalenrolments (all subjects) 374,310  47,580  156,820  
		
	
	Source:Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) Student Record.
	Notes: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded up or down to the nearest five, so components may not sum to totals.
	UK: United Kingdom EU: European Union
	Percentages are given to one decimal place and are based on unrounded figures.
	(1) Covers students of all ages and all years of study enrolled on full-time and part-time courses.
	(2) Domicile refers to the country of a student's permanent or home address prior to entry to their course.
	(3) Subject information is shown as Full Person Equivalents (FPEs) in the table. FPEs are derived by splitting student instances between the different subjects that make up their course aim. Mathematical sciences and computer science are classified as broad subject areas on the HESA Student Record. Physics is classified as a principal subject.
	
		
			 First degree enrolments (1) in Mathematical Sciences, Computer Science and Physics by domicile (2) 
			 UK higher education institutions 
			 Academic year 2009-10 
			 Subject (3) UK Per cent of total EU Per cent of total Non-EU overseas Per cent of total 
			 Mathematical sciences 26,220 2.1% 1,085 1.6% 3,325 3.2% 
			 Computer science 54,500 4.4% 3,220 4.9% 5,545 5.4% 
			 Physics 11,470 0.9% 600 0.9% 530 0.5% 
			 Total enrolments (all subjects) 1,252,015  65,940  103,540  
		
	
	Source: Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA) Student Record.
	Notes: Figures are based on a HESA standard registration population and have been rounded up or down to the nearest five, so components may not sum to totals.
	UK: United Kingdom EU: European Union
	Percentages are given to one decimal place and are based on unrounded figures.
	(1) Covers students of all ages and all years of study enrolled on full-time and part-time courses.
	(2) Domicile refers to the country of a student's permanent or home address prior to entry to their course.
	(3) Subject information is shown as full person equivalents (FPEs) in the table. FPEs are derived by splitting student instances between the different subjects that make up their course aim. Mathematical sciences and computer science are classified as broad subject areas on the HESA Student Record. Physics is classified as a principal subject.

Higher Education: Tuition Fees

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the rules for English universities concerning which European Union (EU) nationals are not required to pay fees; how such nationalities are defined; whether students with Irish passports are regarded as EU nationals not required to pay English university fees; and how many non-fee-paying EU students were enrolled in English universities last year.

Baroness Verma: EU nationals studying at English universities are required to pay tuition fees on the same basis as home students. This is because under EU law, an EU citizen or their family member exercising a treaty right to live in another member state is entitled to access higher education on the same basis as nationals of the host state. Access to higher education has been interpreted to mean that other EU nationals should be treated the same way in relation to tuition fees as home students. An EU national or their family member coming to study at an English university will therefore be charged the same tuition fee as a UK national and have access to a tuition fee loan, providing they have resided in the EEA or Switzerland for the three years prior to the first day of the first academic year of their course. An EU national is defined as a national of one of the EU member states, including nationals of the Republic of Ireland. The family member can be any nationality.
	Some universities may, for their own reasons, choose to waive fees for particular students, but we do not collect data on the country of origin of such students. In addition English HEIs that choose to participate in the Erasmus scheme do so on the understanding that they are required to teach incoming students from the EU, and that these students cannot be charged a fee for their Erasmus year. The British Council manages the Erasmus programme in the UK-figures from the British Council website show that in 2008-09 about 12,000 students studied at English HEIs for a single year-these students were not required by English HEIs to pay a tuition fee.

Housing

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what proportion of the homes to be provided under the recently announced Affordable Homes Programme they estimate will be built by local authorities.

Baroness Hanham: As local authorities are not scheduled to sign contracts with the Homes and Communities Agency until the housing revenue account reforms are in place in April 2012, the allocations announced in July 2011 include around 5 per cent of the 80,000 affordable homes to be delivered through the Homes and Communities Agency's Affordable Homes Programme as provided by local authorities.

Housing

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will continue to permit local authorities to require the provision of affordable homes, including homes to rent, under agreements under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.

Baroness Hanham: Local authorities should use evidence to inform decisions on the number of affordable homes needed and set policies for delivery in their local plan, including where appropriate requiring the provision of affordable homes through planning obligations under Section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.
	We are currently consulting on whether to allow local authorities to use receipts from the community infrastructure levy to fund affordable housing, should they wish to do so and how this might work alongside section 106.

Housing

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their estimate of the number of homes in social housing that become available for re-letting each year.

Baroness Hanham: Estimates of the number of properties in England that became vacant and were re-let by local authorities and housing associations as social rent general needs lettings are shown in the table below. Information is only available for general needs lettings; data for local authorities has only been collected since 2007-08.
	
		
			  Total re-lets 
			 2007-08 225,410 
			 2008-09 232,940 
			 2009-10 237,220 
			 2010-11 239,670 
		
	
	Source: CORE lettings returns
	Social landlords will also have some stock which is vacant at any one point in time, of which some will and some will not be available for letting. As at 1 April 2011 there were around 6,000 local authority owned properties that were vacant and available for letting, and as at 31 March 2011 there were around 5,000 vacant general needs properties owned by private registered providers that were re-lets but ready for occupation.
	(Sources: DCLG's Business Plan Statistical Appendix, Tenant Services Authority's Regulatory Statistical Return).

Legislation

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what legislation, passed during the 2005-10 Parliament, is the responsibility of HM Treasury and has yet to be brought into force, either in full or in part.

Lord Sassoon: The table below shows the primary legislation, passed during the 2005-10 Parliament, which is the sole responsibility of HM Treasury and has yet to be brought into force.
	
		
			 1. Banking Act 2009 
			 5170 Not yet in force 
			 5172 Not yet in force 
			 Ss255-256 Not yet in force 
			 2. Terrorist Asset Freezing Act 2010 
			 S51 Not yet in force, due to come into force 31 March 2012 
			 3. Financial Services Act 2010  
			 S15 Not yet in force 
			 Schedule 2 Pt 2-paragraph 36 Not yet in force 
			 4. Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies and Credit Unions Act 2010 
			 S1-7 Not yet in force

Legislation

Lord Kennedy of Southwark: To ask Her Majesty's Government what legislation, passed during the 2005-10 Parliament, is the responsibility of the Northern Ireland Office and has yet to be brought into force, either in full or in part.

Lord Shutt of Greetland: The information requested is shown in the following table.
	
		
			 Act Provisions not yet in force 
			 Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act2006 Schedule 4, Paragraph 15, which amends the Energy (Northern Ireland) Order 2003.   Some provisions of Schedule 5 have not been commenced. These would provide for the repeal of:   Section 14(4), the words following paragraph (d) of the Electoral Law (Northern Ireland) Act 1962;   Section 13B(4) (e) of the Representation of the People Act 1983;   Schedule 2, paragraph 3(a) and Schedule 3, paragraph 9(f) of the Northern Ireland Act 1998;   Section 60 in subsection (1) "and" at the end of paragraph (b) and in Subsection (5), "or" at the end of Paragraph (b) of the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act 2005;   Schedule 1, paragraph 110 of the Electoral Administration Act 2006.

National Citizen Service

Lord Hylton: To ask Her Majesty's Government what selection criteria will be applied in the recruitment of 16 year-olds to fill the 30,000 places that will be available in the National Citizen Service in 2012.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The only criteria for National Citizen Service (NCS) is that it is a programme for young people who have just completed year 11-those who are or are about to turn 16. In exceptional circumstances, the programme may be open to young people aged 17 or 18, or up to 25 for young people with learning difficulties or disabilities. The 29 organisations delivering NCS in 2012 have been selected on their ability to remove any barriers to participation to reach young people from all backgrounds, contributing to the programme's central aim to enable participants to mix with those with different social, cultural and ethnic experiences and views to themselves. The long-term aim is for NCS to be universal, but not compulsory, offering every 16 year-old the opportunity to participate in NCS.

Office of Budget Responsibility

Lord Barnett: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Chancellor of the Exchequer will supply in advance to the Office for Budget Responsibility the details of his proposals for the Budget, as he has done with the Autumn Statement.

Lord Sassoon: The Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) Memorandum of Understanding and Charter for Budget Responsibility, both published in April 2011, provide detail on the working relationship between HM Treasury and the OBR. Paragraph 4.12 of the Charter states:
	"The Treasury will advise the OBR, where necessary, on policy in development that may be of relevance to any forecast or analysis that the OBR is undertaking (for example, policy for possible inclusion within the Budget will be shared with the OBR ahead of the Budget)".
	These documents are available on the HM Treasury website: http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/dataobr_index. htm.

Office of the Chief Coroner

Lord Boswell of Aynho: To ask Her Majesty's Government, in the light of their recent decision to retain the post of Chief Coroner, what arrangements they will make to establish a departmental board and an independent consultative board to improve the management of the coronial service and to implement its charter; and how they will relate to the post of Chief Coroner.

Lord McNally: The Government are currently considering whether to establish a departmental board in light of the decision to proceed with implementation of the office of the Chief Coroner.
	The Government still intend to establish a consultative group of bereavement organisations to assess the impact that the new charter is having on coroner services. This group will need to work closely with the Chief Coroner.

Olympic Games and Paralympic Games 2012

Baroness Coussins: To ask Her Majesty's Government what arrangements they have to recruit professional interpreters and translators for the 2012 Olympic Games.

Baroness Garden of Frognal: Her Majesty's Government currently has no plans for the recruitment of professional interpreters and translators for Government business during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games. The requirement will be kept under review as business and dignitary programmes develop. For the Games themselves, the London 2012 Organising Committee will be recruiting 850 specialist professional interpreters, as well as around 3,000 Games Maker volunteers who will have some level of skill in a foreign language.

Pensions

Lord Beecham: To ask Her Majesty's Government what will be the annual saving to the Exchequer of uprating the basic and additional state pensions for 2012-13 by the Consumer Prices Index rather than the Retail Price Index.

Lord Freud: Uprating the basic and additional state pension by the Retail Prices Index in 2012-13 would cost £300 million more than uprating by the consumer Prices Index.
	Note:
	Figure based on DWP autumn 2011 expenditure forecast, rounded to the nearest £10 million.

Police: Racial Equality

Lord Ouseley: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Henley on 22 November (WA 231), what information is held by the Home Office to assess the race equality efficacy and impact of policing in England and Wales.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government what race equality impact assessments have recently been made of the police service in England and Wales; and, if no such assessment has been made, why not.
	To ask Her Majesty's Government how the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Equalities and Criminal Information makes assessments of the equality impact of the police service in England and Wales.

Lord Henley: The Home Office collects and uses a range of relevant equality and diversity information and draws on this to inform strategy and policies.
	The Equality Act 2010 places a statutory duty on public authorities, including police forces, to have due regard to the need to eliminate unlawful discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good community relations. The equality and diversity performance and impact of policing policies and practices should be a priority for forces in consultation with their local communities.

Railways: Electrification

Lord Bradshaw: To ask Her Majesty's Government what is the estimated cost of electrifying the railway route from Leeds to York; and when they are considering undertaking this work.

Earl Attlee: The Government have announced electrification of the railway route between Manchester and York via Leeds. The current estimate for the cost of the whole scheme is £290 million, as set out in table 2.3 of the Autumn Statement.
	The Government do not have an estimate of the cost of the Leeds-York section. The Government are working with Network Rail to confirm the timescales for delivery of the scheme in the 2014-19 period.

Railways: Emissions

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Earl Attlee on 25 November (WA 287-8), what measures they will put in place to allow train operators to purchase locomotives or their motors which comply with the European Union flexibility directive in the period before it is transposed into United Kingdom law; and whether they will take action against train operators under the earlier non-road machinery directive if their purchase complies with the flexibility directive before it is transposed.

Earl Attlee: The non-road mobile machinery emissions directive prohibits the placing on the market of engines which do not comply with the latest air pollutant emissions standards. This requirement is transposed in the UK by the Non-Road Mobile Machinery (Emission of Gaseous and Particulate Pollutant) Regulations. Since the existing UK regulations do not contain a flexibility scheme for locomotives, and will not do so until the directive is transposed, a manufacturer who places an engine on the UK market under the terms of the flexibility scheme in advance of the transposition of the amending directive would be in breach of UK law. It would be for the courts to decide whether any other person was complicit in the offence. The Government recognise the difficulties faced by operators, and is working to transpose Directive 2011/88/EU and the additional flexibility it permits. However, the Government have no power to prevent the law as it currently stands from being applied.

Railways: High Speed 2

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what levels of freight traffic High Speed Two Ltd has used in assessing the capacity of the West Coast Main Line north of Litchfield after the first section of the line opens.

Earl Attlee: HS2 Ltd undertook a high level assessment of the capacity available for freight north of Lichfield, bearing in mind the March 2007 Freight Route Utilisation Strategy published by Network Rail. The conclusion was that the standard hour December 2008 West Coast Main Line timetable-which features paths for three trains per hour from London (Wembley), plus a fourth hourly path from Nuneaton (for services from Southampton), and a fifth path joining at Stafford (from the Birmingham area)-provided sufficient capacity for the foreseeable freight traffic through this area. It was anticipated that any additional freight trains required to operate would do so within the constraints and headroom of the pre-existing path limitations set by the December 2008 timetable.

Railways: Platforms

Lord Berkeley: To ask Her Majesty's Government what are the required standard heights above rail for railway platforms in stations serving (1) national rail services, (2) Eurostar trains, (3) dedicated high speed services on High Speed Two (HS2), (4) high speed trains using HS2 and the national rail network, and (5) high speed trains such as Eurostars and German ICE trains which can use HS2, HS1 and operate on the continent; and which of these standards comply with disabled persons access regulations.

Earl Attlee: The standard platform height on the conventional rail network in Great Britain is 915mm above the rail. Before HS1 was completed, Eurostar trains used variable step equipment that enabled them to serve platforms of that height in this country and 760mm above rail when in France and Belgium.
	As international platforms on HS1 are at 760mm, Eurostars (and other future users of HS1) now encounter a consistent height throughout their journey. If it proceeds, platforms on HS2 would also be built to 760mm. Services that operated on HS2 and the national rail network would need to use equipment similar to that used by Eurostars when they still served Waterloo.
	550mm and 760mm are the standard platform heights permitted by the Technical Specification for Interoperability for Persons with Reduced Mobility, while Great Britain has a specific case which permits the use of 915mm high platforms if desired.

Republic of Ireland: Financial Support

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether the Government of Ireland has requested a further renegotiation of the terms of the loan extended by HM Treasury to Ireland, and if so, when that loan agreement was signed.

Lord Sassoon: The Financial Secretary to the Treasury deposited the bilateral loan agreement in the Library of House on 10 January 2011 . The agreement can be found online at the following link: http://www.parliament. uk/deposits/depositedpapers/2011/DEP2011-0015.pdf.
	Since then, no changes have been made to the bilateral loan agreement.
	Following the 21 July 2011 agreement by euro area member states to reduce the interest rates applied to loans from the euro area-only European Financial Stability Facility, the Chancellor of the Exchequer notified his Irish counterpart that the UK was able to cut the interest rate applied to the bilateral loan. The new rate is yet to be agreed. The Government will update Parliament on the changes to the terms of the loan agreement in due course.

Republic of Ireland: Financial Support

Lord Laird: To ask Her Majesty's Government what contact they have had with the Government of the Republic of Ireland during the past six months concerning the loans they have provided to that country; what was the reason for the contact; and what was the result.

Lord Sassoon: Government Ministers meet regularly with their European counterparts, including Irish Ministers, to discuss a range of issues. It would not be appropriate to provide a running commentary on those discussions.

Retail: Mary Portas Review

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government when they will publish the outcome of Ms Mary Portas' review into the future of the United Kingdom high street, which was due to be published in autumn 2011.

Baroness Wilcox: The Independent Review of the High Street led by Mary Portas has been published today. A copy of the review is being placed in the Library of the House and a copy will be sent to the noble Lord.

Roads: Potholes

Lord Storey: To ask Her Majesty's Government how much of the £200 million pothole repair fund was allocated to each highway authority in metropolitan boroughs; and how much of this each highway authority has spent to date.

Earl Attlee: In recognition of the abnormal damage caused by the exceptional winter weather at the end of 2010, the Department for Transport announced in March 2011 that they were allocating £200 million of extra resource funding to local highway authorities in England for repairing potholes.
	The table below provides information on how much of the £200 million was allocated to each highway authority in Metropolitan Boroughs. Each authority has published a statement on their website stating how this additional funding has or is due to be spent.
	
		
			 Metropolitan Authority Share of £200 million Allocation 
			 Barnsley £788,767 
			 Birmingham £1,682,586 
			 Bolton £652,861 
			 Bradford £1,118,319 
			 Bury £400,090 
			 Calderdale £683,076 
			 Coventry £488,183 
			 Doncaster £924,521 
			 Dudley £725,151 
			 Gateshead £460,154 
			 Kirklees £1,304,275 
			 Knowsley £355,731 
			 Leeds £1,840,829 
			 Liverpool £1,058,774 
			 Manchester £873,702 
			 Newcastle upon Tyne £492,889 
			 North Tyneside £433,185 
			 Oldham £600,743 
			 Rochdale £498,262 
			 Rotherham £691,205 
			 Salford £608,644 
			 Sandwell £517,935 
			 Sefton £613,026 
			 Sheffield £1,427,553 
			 Solihull £453,248 
			 South Tyneside £303,756 
			 St. Helens £484,078 
			 Stockport £505,238 
			 Sunderland £613,749 
			 Tameside £457,925 
			 Trafford £472,835 
			 Wakefield £830,180 
			 Walsall £522,243 
			 Wigan £623,330 
			 Wirral £625,931 
			 Wolverhampton £445,588

Schools: Breakfast Clubs and Lunches

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty's Government what research has taken place into the impact of (1) breakfast clubs, and (2) school lunches, on the ability of pupils to concentrate and learn.

Lord Hill of Oareford: The School Food Trust has carried out research into the impact of breakfast clubs and school lunches on the ability of pupils to concentrate and learn. The trust's research shows that children are more focused in the afternoon after a good lunch, while smaller studies comparing exam results at schools with breakfast clubs to those at schools without found pupils achieved better results where healthy breakfasts were on offer. The research can be viewed on the School Food Trust's website via the following links:
	http://www.schoolfoodtrust.org.uk/schools/reports/the-impact-of-primary-school-breakfast-clubs-in-deprived-areas-of-london;
	http://www.schoolfoodtrust.org.uk/school-cooks-caterers/reports/school-lunch-and-learning-behaviour-in-primary-schools-an-intervention-study;
	http://www.schoolfoodtrust.org.uk/school-cooks-caterers/reports/school-lunch-and-learning-behaviour-in-secondary-schools-an-intervention-study.

Schools: National Curriculum

Baroness Jones of Whitchurch: To ask Her Majesty's Government when the outcome of the review of the national curriculum will be published.

Lord Hill of Oareford: We will be announcing out initial proposals for the national curriculum shortly, following which there will be full public consultation before final decisions are made.

Somalia

Lord Avebury: To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had or intend to have with Somaliland stakeholders on the expenditure of forty per cent of the £250 million of aid provided by the United Kingdom and allocated to the Somali region for 2011-15 on projects in Somaliland.

Baroness Northover: The Secretary of State for International Development (right honourable Andrew Mitchell) discussed with President Silanyo of Somaliland the UK's spending plans for the region during a visit to Hargeisa in January 2011.
	UK Government officials and implementing partners are in regular contact with the Somaliland authorities on specific spending plans in our main areas of development assistance (i.e. health, governance, wealth creation and humanitarian).
	Officials from the Department for International Development (DfID) are working with other international partners on future support to Somaliland including a possible donor fund.
	The UK Government are also looking at other ways to increase our engagement with Somaliland and deepen the relationship.

Sudan

Baroness Cox: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they will make representations to the Government of Sudan concerning reports of the arrest and treatment of civilians from Blue Nile State, including the poet Mr Abdel-Monim Rahma.

Lord Howell of Guildford: We are greatly concerned at reports detailing the alleged detention and mistreatment of civilian members of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement (North). Our Embassy in Khartoum is working urgently to ascertain the facts behind these allegations. If confirmed, we intend to raise these cases with the Government of Sudan, in concert with European Union colleagues.

Taxation: Medical Insurance

Lord Myners: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether, following proposals made by the Independent Review of Sickness Absence, they will reintroduce tax relief on private medical insurance and private medical treatment; and how they will distinguish between the cost of treating and insuring against work-related health issues, and wider health treatments.

Lord Sassoon: The Government have noted the recommendations of the Independent Review of Sickness Absence. Any changes to tax policy are considered as part of the annual budget cycle.

Turkey

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty's Government what recent assessment they have made of human rights in Turkey; and whether they had improved or deteriorated since the previous assessment.

Lord Howell of Guildford: We monitor human rights in Turkey on an ongoing basis. The European Union Annual Progress Report for 2011 is the most comprehensive and recent annual assessment of Turkey's record in human rights. The 2011 report highlighted progress in some areas, such as freedom of religion, while criticising others, particularly freedom of expression. We hope that Turkey's moves to adopt a new constitution will lead to further improvement and continue to work closely with other EU member states in addressing human rights issues in Turkey.

Turkey

Lord Patten: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have made representations to Turkey concerning the number of students currently imprisoned there.

Lord Howell of Guildford: The Government have not made specific representations to the Government of Turkey regarding the number of students imprisoned there. Our embassy in Ankara regularly raises issues relating to freedom of expression in the context of wider discussions on human rights with its Turkish counterparts and we work closely with other EU member states in addressing human rights issues in Turkey.
	Our embassy in Ankara will continue to monitor the situation surrounding the imprisonment of students closely.

UK Border Agency: Staff

Lord Marlesford: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many members of the staff of the UK Border Agency and its predecessor bodies have been convicted of criminal offences in connection with their official activities over the past seven years; and, in each case, what was the name of the offender, the date and nature of the offence and the sentence received.

Lord Henley: The UK Border Agency at present has 21,642 staff. Over the past seven years, 23 staff have been convicted of criminal offences in connection with their official activities, an average of almost three convictions per year. The detail requested is set out in the following table:
	
		
			 Name Charges Conviction date Sentence 
			 Gary SMALL Possession of false documents, theft 02.2006 18 months 
			 Collins OKELLO Facilitation, Misconduct in Public Office 2006 2 years 
			 Tyronne PIERRE Theft 24.4.06 300 hours community service 
			 Alvaro FIGUEIREDO Misconduct in Public Office 1.10.07 2 1/2 years 
			 Aisha Tokunbo AJIA Misconduct in Public Office 12.2.08 3 1/2 years 
			 Mofeyishola Olabamigbe Uzoma JOHN-AYO Misconduct in Public Office 14.3.08 9 years 
			 Jahangir ALAM Misconduct in Public Office 6.6.08 14 months 
			 Shareen Naomi PATTERSON Forgery 29.8.08 2 1/2 years 
			 Babs CAREW Bribery 17.10.08 3 years 
			 Eme ESUA Misconduct in Public Office+ Section 25 of the ID Cards Act 24.4.09 3 years + 2 x 16 months concurrent 
			 Shannon FRANCIS Fraud 12.5.09 12 months community order 
			 Aliya ALI Misconduct in Public Office 25.9.09 5 years 
			 David HART Fraud 30.12.09 18 months 
			 Anthony Davis QUARCO Misconduct in Public Office 2.3.10 9 years 6 years; 
			  Proceeds of Crime Act Offences  5 years 
			  Facilitation  6 year 
			  ID Cards Act Offences  4 x 4 years; 3 x 2 years 
			 Bridget EWORTH (nee IDIGBE) Misconduct in Public Office 16.4.10 6 years 
			 Atma SAWH Misconduct in Public Office 1.9.10 5 years 
			 Peter CRUMBIE Facilitation 19.11.10 12 Months 
			 Maryam JAVAID Misconduct in Public Office ID Cards Act offence 22.11.10 2 years 
			 Latesha POLSON Fraud, Using a False Instrument 20.1.11 100 hours community service + costs + compensation order 
			 Karanjit MAND Fraud, Misuse of Computers 4.4.11 80 hours community service 
			 Shezad MUSSA Misconduct in Public Office 3.6.11 12 months 
			 Benjamin Aghogho ORORORO Misconduct in Public Office 26.8.11 5 years

UK Border Agency: Staff

Lord Marlesford: To ask Her Majesty's Government what arrangements are in place for internal and external checks on the integrity and honesty of the staff of the UK Border Agency.

Lord Henley: The UK Border Agency has a wide range of measures in place for internal and external checks on the integrity and honesty of staff. I am unable to share detail on this as to do so could compromise the prevention or detection of crime. However, general examples include pre-employment checks, national security vetting, audits and assurances of systems and procedures and the use of sophisticated data mining technology.

Water Management: Overseas

Lord Hunt of Chesterton: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they are making use of the media to inform the public about their support for international water programmes; and whether they have made representations to intergovernmental bodies such as the United Nations about using the internet to publicise their comments, deliberations and conclusions about their water programmes.

Baroness Northover: The UK Department for International Development (DfID) aims to ensure that information about its programmes is communicated effectively via the media to the UK public.
	Opportunities to communicate about the UK Government's support for water programmes are identified and planned in advance. For example, World Water Day in March is marked each year with proactive communications on this issue. Different channels, including print, broadcast, digital and social media, are used to reach and inform a range of audiences.
	In line with the UK Aid Transparency Guarantee, full information about all water projects and programmes is published on the DfID website (www.dfid.gov.uk).
	Under the UK Aid Transparency Guarantee, we encourage all international aid providers to be transparent about their aid projects and expenditure, including United Nations agencies.

Young Offenders

Lord Dubs: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many offenders aged 18-20 from the London Borough of Wandsworth were held in (1) young offender institutions, (2) local prisons, and (3) other parts of the secure estate, in each month since May 2009.

Lord McNally: All young offenders serving sentences of detention in a young offenders' institution (YOI) are held in appropriately designated YOI accommodation within the prison estate. The majority of this accommodation is in dedicated YOIs, although some establishments in the estate have a dual designation (designated both as a prison and a YOI) and hold both adult prisoners and young offenders.
	The table below shows the number of remand or convicted unsentenced and convicted and sentenced male and female prisoners aged 18-20 years old with a recorded residential address or proxy in the London Borough of Wandsworth who were held in predominant function male young offender institutions, predominant function male local prisons and other prisons (including female prisons) on a set day in each month where data is available since May 2009.
	
		
			 Number and Location of Male and Female young adult offenders (aged 18-20) originating from London Borough of Wandsworth 
			  May- Sep- Nov- Jan- Mar- May- Jul- Sep 
			 Location 09 10 10 11 11 11 11 11 
			 (a) Male Young Offender Institutions 48 59 43 42 44 46 39 46 
			 (b) Male local Prisons <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 <5 
			 (c) Other Prisons (including female prisons) <5 11 9 6 10 8 7 10 
		
	
	These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing.
	Information on a prisoner's residence is provided by prisoners on reception into prison and recorded on a central IT system. Addresses can include a prisoner's home address, an address to which they intend to return on discharge or next of kin address and these figures are provided in the table above.
	If no address is given, a prisoner's committal court address is used as a proxy for the area in which a prisoner is resident. These figures are also included in the table above. No address has been recorded and no court information is available for around 3 per cent of all prisoners. These figures are therefore excluded from the table.

Young Offenders

Lord Dubs: To ask Her Majesty's Government how many juvenile offenders from the London Borough of Wandsworth were held in (1) secure children's homes, (2) secure training centres, and (3) young offender institutions, in each month since May 2005.

Lord McNally: The table in the attached Excel file shows the number of young people (aged 10 to 17) either sentenced or remanded in custody attached to the Wandsworth Youth Offending Team.
	This data are from the Youth Justice Board (YJB) and refers to secure training centres (STCs), secure children's homes (SCHs), and young offender institutions (YOIs).
	The figures from April 2010 onwards are provisional.
	The final figures for April 2010 to March 2011 will be finalised in the 2010-11 Annual Youth Justice Statistics publication on 26 January 2012.
	Data from April 2011 onwards will be finalised when the 2011-12 Annual Youth Justice Statistics are published in 2013.
	The data comes from the Youth Justice Board's Secure Accommodation Clearing House System (SACHS). These figures have been drawn from administrative IT systems, which, as with any large scale recording system, are subject to possible errors with data entry and processing and may be subject to change over time.
	
		
			 Young people in custody attached to Wandsworth Youth Offending Team by establishment type 
			 Month Secure Children's Homes Secure Training Centres Young Offender Institutions 
			 May-05 1 1 16 
			 Jun-05 2 2 18 
			 Jul-05 1 2 17 
			 Aug-05 3 0 24 
			 Sep-05 4 1 24 
			 Oct-05 3 0 24 
			 Nov-05 2 1 19 
			 Dec-05 2 1 17 
			 Jan-06 2 0 15 
			 Feb-06 2 1 20 
			 Mar-06 1 2 21 
			 Apr-06 1 1 21 
			 May-06 1 1 21 
			 Jun-06 1 3 26 
			 Jul-06 1 2 22 
			 Aug-06 0 3 22 
			 Sep-06 1 1 33 
			 Oct-06 1 0 34 
			 Nov-06 0 0 27 
			 Dec-06 0 0 21 
			 Jan-07 0 0 24 
			 Feb-07 0 0 22 
			 Mar-07 0 1 18 
			 Apr-07 0 1 16 
			 May-07 0 3 16 
			 Jun-07 0 3 18 
			 Jul-07 0 3 24 
			 Aug-07 1 5 22 
			 Sep-07 1 6 24 
			 Oct-07 2 3 28 
			 Nov-07 2 2 30 
			 Dec-07 2 2 35 
			 Jan-08 2 3 31 
			 Feb-08 2 3 30 
			 Mar-08 2 2 24 
			 Apr-08 2 1 17 
			 May-08 1 2 24 
			 Jun-08 1 3 26 
			 Jul-08 0 3 25 
			 Aug-08 0 1 30 
			 Sep-08 0 3 25 
			 Oct-08 0 2 26 
			 Nov-08 1 1 22 
			 Dec-08 1 1 21 
			 Jan-09 1 1 20 
			 Feb-09 0 1 22 
			 Mar-09 0 2 16 
			 Apr-09 0 5 17 
			 May-09 0 5 22 
			 Jun-09 0 6 25 
			 Jul-09 0 5 20 
			 Aug-09 0 4 20 
			 Sep-09 2 4 21 
			 Oct-09 1 5 22 
			 Nov-09 0 5 24 
			 Dec-09 0 4 28 
			 Jan-10 0 3 22 
			 Feb-10 0 3 20 
			 Mar-10 0 2 21 
			 Apr-10 1 2 22 
			 May-10 0 2 21 
			 Jun-10 1 3 27 
			 Jul-10 0 2 26 
			 Aug-10 0 1 27 
			 Sep-10 0 2 26 
			 Oct-10 0 1 24 
			 Nov-10 1 1 22 
			 Dec-10 1 4 21 
			 Jan-11 1 5 20 
			 Feb-11 2 6 25 
			 Mar-11 3 7 23 
			 Apr-11 3 9 23 
			 May-11 3 8 20 
			 Jun-11 2 8 22 
			 Jul-11 3 5 22 
			 Aug-11 2 4 22 
			 Sep-11 2 6 25